Air-brake coupling.



(No Model.)

Patented May 7, I90l. J. H. PHILLIPS.

AIR BRAKE COUPLING. (Application fllgd Aug. 94, 1am.)

W f W W 4 Afiorgey UNITED STATESv ArnN'r FFICE.

JOHN H. PHILLIPS, OF POTTSVILLE, PENNSYLVANIA.

AIR-BRAKE COUPLING.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 673,566, dated May '7, 1901. Application filed August 24, 1900. Serial No, 27,941. (No model.)

To all whom, it may concern.-

Be it known that I, JOHN H. PHILLIPS, a citizen of the United States, residing at Pottsville, in the county of Schuylkill and State of Pennsylvania, have invented a new and useful Air-Brake Coupling, of which the follow ing is a specification.

The invention relates to improvements in air-brake couplings.

The object of the present invention is to improve the construction of air-brake couplings and to provide a simple and comparatively inexpensive one adapted to be readily applied to cars and capable of coupling automatically when two cars come together and of yielding laterally and longitudinally to accom modate itself to the vibration of a car.

The invention consists in the construction and novel combination and arrangement of parts hereinafter fully described, illustrated in the accompanying drawings, and pointed out. in the claims hereto appended.

In the drawings, Figure 1 is a longitudinal sectional "iew of a portion of a car provided with an air-brake coupling constructed in accordance with this invention. Fig. 2 is a detail view of two of the coupler-heads. Fig. 3 is a front elevation of one of the'couplcrheads. Fig. 4 is a detail perspective view of the slide. Fig. 5 is a similar view'of the block.

Like numerals of reference designate corresponding parts in all the figures of the drawings.

1 designates a car provided with a suitable car-coupling 2, which may be of any desired construction. Suspended fronithedraft-timbers 3 by a pair of brackets 4: is a frame 5, consisting of a horizontal bottom portion 6 and upwardly-extending front and rear ends 7 and 8, secured to the brackets 4 and provided with perforations to form ways for a longitudinal rod 9. The rod 9, which supports a cushioned slide 11, extends through the openings 10 and has a rear spring 11 disposed on it and interposed between the rear end 8 of the frame 5 and a suitable stop 12 of the rod. The spring, which is of spiral form, is adapted to resist the rearward movement of the longitudinal rod, and the rod is adjusted by the stop 12, which consists of a disk and a collar 13, having a clamping-screw for engaging the rod. The front portion of the rod 9 supports a front coiled spring 14, interposed between the slide 11 and an adjustable stop 15, consisting of a disk and a clampingcollar 16, located in rear of the disk or washer 15 and adapted to resist the backward movement of the front spring. The slide 11 is provided at its rear end with an upwardly-extending arm or portion 17, having a transverse slot 18 to receive the rod, which is pro vided at its front end with a head 19. The front end of the front spring bears against the upwardly-extending rear portion of the slide, and the transverse slot 18 of the latter is adapted to permit the necessary lateral movement of the slide. The slide is provided at its upper face with a rectangular lug 20, located in advance of the arm or extension 17 and arranged to engage a bottom longitudinal groove 21 of a block 22. The block 22, which is arranged upon'the upper face of the slide, is substantially triangular in side elevation, and-the bottom groove 21 extends the entire length of the lower face of the block, which is provided at its rear face with a transverse slot 23. The rear face of the block is vertical, and the transverse slot 23, which registers with the slot 18 of the slide, communicates with a vertical socket 24 and with a vertical slot 25, forming an entrance to the transverse slot 23 and adapted to permit the head 19 of the rod to be introduced into the same. I

The groove and the lug maintain the block centrally of the slide and do not interfere with the longitudinal movement of the latter, and both the block and the slide move laterally together. The slide and the block have a slight pivotal movement on the front end of the rod, the socket and the head of the rod permitting this action whether the block be contiguous to thearm or extension 17 of the slide or in advance of the same.

When the slide is moved rearward, it is cushioned by the front spring and by the rear spring, and the tension of the front spring may be regulated by the clamping-collar 16. The slide is provided with a longitudinal bore or passage 26, which communicates at its rear end with the train-pipe of an air-brake by a suitable connection 27, which is flexible to permit the necessarymovement of the slide, and the front end of the bore or passage is connected by a short pipe 28 with a circular head 29, having arms or extensions 30, forming guides and adapted to insure a proper positioning of the parts when two coupler-heads come together. The coupler-head 29 is provided with an annular passage 31, which conimunicates with the steam-pipe 32, and the front of the coupler-head is provided with a suitable opening 33,arranged around acentr'al opening 34 and adapted to register with a corresponding opening of. another couplerhead. The central opening of the couplerhead coinmunicates with the short pipe or connection 28, which is provided with a suitable cock or cut-off 35; but instead of arranging the passages of the coupler-head in the man nershown any other arrangement may be employed to accommodate the parts to the character of brake to which they are to be applied and to adord the necessary connections for steam or other pipes. I v

It will be seen that the pipe-coupling is exceedingly simple and inexpensive in construction, that it is adapted to be readily applied to cars without interfering with the car-couplings thereof, and that it is capable of coupling automatically and of yielding to the movements of a car and of preservinga tight joint between two coupler-heads. It will also be apparent that by arranging the slide and the block in the manner shown the couplerhead is permitted to move both longitudinally and laterally of a car.

Preferably the head 29 is cast .with the rearwardly extending interiorly threaded socket into which the pipe 28 is screwed, said head between the arms or extensions 30 being open and the rear wall of the cavity, forming the annular passage 31, being provided with a threaded socket, in which is fitted a nipple formingapreferablyintegral partofaplug34c, of which the front end is of annular construction, spaced at its periphery from the wall of the cavity 31 to form the annular passage 33 and having its central opening in alinemeut with the bore of the nipple. It will be noted that this plug is removably fitted in the head and may be removed to give access to the cav ity forming the annular passage 3L and that the periphery of the flattened or disk-like front end of the plug is spaced from the iuturned lip of the wall of the cavity 31 a distance which in practice does notexceed onesixteenth of an inch. An annular opening of this width gives an area sufficient to insure the proper operation of the parts in practice.

What I claim is--- a 7 7 1. In a device of the class described, the combination of a rod, a slide located below the plane of the rod and provided with a projecting portion having an opening to receive the said rod, 2. guide-block secured to the rod at the outer end thereof and connected with the slide at a point in advance of the rod, and acoupler-head carried by the slide, substantially as described.

2. In a device of the class described, the combination of a rod, a cushioned slide located below the rod and provided with a projecting portion having an opening receiving the said rod, the exterior block secured to the outer end of-the rod and having a socket to receive the same, said block and rod being slidingly connected with each other, and a coupler-head carried by the slide, substantially as described; g

3. In a device of the class described, the combination of a rod, a slide located. below the plane of the rod and provided with a projecting portionhaving an opening receiving the rod, said slide being provided with a lug, the exterior guide-block secured to the rod and provided with a groove receiving the said lug, and a coupler-head carried by the slide, substantially as described.

4:. In a device of the class described, the combination of a rod, a cushioned slide provided with an arm or extension having an opening, a lug extending upward from the slide in advance of the arm or extension, a block connected with the rod and provided at its lower face with a groove to receive the lug, a coupler-head carried by the slide, and means for cushioning the rod, substantially asdescribed.

5. In a device of the class described, the combination of a rod having a head, a slide supported by therod, a block connected with the slide and haviuga socket to receive the head thereof, said block being provided at the socket with vertical and horizontal slots, and a coupler-head carried by the slide, substantially as described.

6. In a device of the class described, the combination with a car provided with brackets, a frame supported by the brackets, alongitudinal rod guided in the frame, a rear spring disposed on the rod and arranged within the frame and cushioning the said rod, a slide having an opening receiving the rod, a block connected with the rodand arranged on the slide, and the front cushioning-spring mounted on the rod and engaging the same and the slide, substantially as described.

. In testimony that I claim the foregoing as my own I havehereto affixed my signature in the presence of two witnesses. Y

JOHN H. PHILLIPS.

Witnesses;

DOYLE, FRANK S. APPLEMAN, 

